C’est la simplicité même – Cabillaud en croute d’amandes, coulis de betterave et salade de concombre

I like simple things in general, and a simple life filled with flavors and colors. When things get too complex, in my life or in my plate, it turns into chaos and I get confused. As Leonardo da Vinci once said “la simplicité est la sophistication suprême” I tend to agree with him (translated into “simplicity is extreme sophistication”, but then it’s just an opinion. This dish is fairly simple in terms of ingredients and nothing will be too confusing for your palate.

You need a thick cod fillet that will not break into pieces. You could serve it with another type of coulis, such as bell pepper, tomato, etc…but I had beets and I thought it would work well here…and it did. I love the sweetness and hearty flavor of beets.

Za’atar is a Middle Eastern dry herb mixture, I use it quite often when I want to give some oriental flair to my dish. It’s usually made of thyme, sumac, oregano, sesame seeds, savory and a bunch of other herbs and spices. It’s usually available at Middle Eastern stores. There are different versions, like the Palestinian, the Lebanese, Syrian, etc…but very similar in tastes, the color sometimes changes, darker or lighter depending on the ingredients ratio.

Ingredients

For the cod

  • 1 egg
  • almond flour or meal
  • za’atar
  • salt and pepper

For the coulis

  • 3 medium size beets, cooked
  • vegetable broth (enough for a smooth and creamy consistency)
  • 1 tsp meyer lemon juice
  • salt and pepper

For the cucumber salad

  • 1 medium Persian cucumber, peeled, seeds removed and finely cubed
  • 1 tbs mint, chopped
  • 1 tsp rice vinegar

Preparation

For the cod

Cut fillets of about 1.5-2 inches pieces. Mix za’atar with almond flour. Beat egg and dip cod fillets in egg. Coat fillets in almond flour mixture. Press well so that mixture sticks to the fish.

Heat olive oil in a pan, cook cod on both sides until golden brown, adjust with salt and pepper.

Serve cod with some cucumber salad and beet coulis on the side.

For the beet coulis

In a blender, mix beets, broth to form a smooth and creamy texture. Adjust with salt and pepper and add lemon juice.

For the cucumber salad

Mix all ingredients together.